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If you want choices, Great Plains Manufacturing, Salina, KS, has you covered. The company will expand its tillage tool line this fall with three new machines. Its drill and planter lines will include new equipment next spring. In each case, buyers can custom-build a machine to suit their tastes.

Tillage toolsGreat Plains recently announced the addition of the Turbo-Till series II, Turbo-Chopper and Turbo-Chisel. All will be available this fall.

The Turbo-Till series II, first available last spring, features 3-in. C-shank standards and rubber-mounted gang bearings as standard equipment. Working widths of 12, 15, 18 and 24 ft. now are available in addition to 30- and 40-ft. models. The company recommends the machine as a fall tool for sizing and incorporating residue to begin residue breakdown and in spring for a consistent seedbed that provides even emergence. Retail prices range from $17,760 for the 12-ft. unit to $52,287 for the 40-ft. model.

The 5000 series Turbo-Chisel features 22-in. Turbo coulters set on 7 ½-in. spacings to slice residue without hair-pinning, followed by chisel shanks. The coulter bar adjusts hydraulically for on-the-go control.

“The Turbo-Chisel is available in 10 rigid and folding models with working widths from 11 ft. 13 in. to 28 ft. 9 in.,” says Rick Hanson, Great Plains president. “It can cut and bury trash up to 12 in., or it can be used to size residue, dislodge root balls, incorporate residue in the top 4 to 5 in. of soil and leave a level surface with a single pass in the spring.”

The tillage tool can be equipped with either all standard chisel shanks or a front row of parabolic shanks followed by either parabolic chisel shanks or standard chisel shanks. Parabolic shanks can be set to run level with the rear shanks or 3 in. deeper. Optional heavy-duty trip shanks have a 1,600-lb. horizontal trip force and reset automatically. Rear attachments include choice of a “buster bar” or “chopper reel.” Retail prices range from $23,800 to $52,500.

Great Plains bills its Turbo-Chopper as a machine for spring or fall. Available models include a 15-ft. 6-in. rigid frame unit and folding units from 18 ft. to 40 ft. 6 in. in working width. It features Turbo blades on the front gang followed by Turbo-Chopper rear gangs.

“The Turbo design provides a crisscross pattern that sizes residue from two directions in one pass,” Hanson says. “The 20-in. coulters mounted on 10-in. spacings begin the fracturing process followed by the 18-in. choppers reels to leave a smooth profile that is level and uniform to the depth of the front coulters.” The machine can be equipped with an optional rolling spike harrow and reel. Retail prices start at $22,500 for the rigid unit and go up to $57,700 for the 40-ft. machine.

Planting optionsBy the 2009 planting season, Great Plains will add a planter and several new drills to its planting options. The Yield-Pro YP40 is a 40-ft. planter that offers a choice of three openers and seven-row spacings. Growers have a choice of two bulk hopper sizes or they can use seed company bulk boxes and a 1,600-gal. cart or a cart with a 1,600-gal. tank plus a 400-gal. tank for fertilizer.

The three-section model 3007HD Great Plains air drill plants at 30 ft. but folds to 10 ft. for safe transport. The drill has two 100-bu. bulk hoppers, which can be used for seed or seed and fertilizer. The 07HD series openers feature 15-in.-dia., 4-ml-thick planter-style blades, 18-position T-handle depth adjustment, cast press wheel arms and ClearShot planter seed tubes. A hydraulic down-pressure system works in conjunction with the parallel linkage to maintain opener-to-ground geometry. Retail price for the drill with coulters, press wheels and Keeton seed firmers is $114,420.

The Great Plains DF4010HD no-till drill is built heavy for rugged no-till conditions. A box-beam steel frame provides the weight for penetration through hard ground and residue, and six 18x22.5 tires minimize compaction. The drill uses 10HD openers that have 15-in., 4-ml offset opener blades, a cast blade separator and ClearShot seed tubes.

The drill’s 3.2-bu./ft. seed box comes standard with a 60% seed/40% dry fertilizer split but also can be ordered in 68/32, 55/45 and 100% seed configurations. Other options include 7 ½- or 10-in. row spacings; fluted, wavy or Turbo counters; and center-rib, double-V or wedge-style press wheels. Retail price for the drill starts at $133,307 for a unit with 7 ½-in. row spacing, 3x13 press wheels, dry fertilizer configuration and no coulters.

For growers who want a 3-pt.-mounted, no-till drill, Great Plains now offers the 3P806NT and 3P1006NT. The drills feature 06 series openers and 5/16-in. fluted or 5/8-in. Turbo coulters. Multiple box combinations start with a 2-bu/ft. main seed box. A dry fertilizer box, a warm season native grass box and a box for small seeds are also available. Retail prices range from $16,398 to $17,468 for the 3P806NT and $19,590 to $20,823 for the 3P1006.

A pull-type, 10-ft. no-till drill also will be available next spring. The 1007NT has a three-wheel design that allows it to plant and transport in a 10-ft. width. The drill has a floating tongue that pivots vertically to flex up and over terraces. Seed box options are similar to those for the Great Plains's 3-pt.-mounted drills. Retail prices range from $30,395 to $34,868.

The model 800 min-till drill is for growers who want big drill features in a small machine. It uses the same openers as the company's bigger min-till drills, a fluted metering system, four-speed gearbox with lock-out hubs, T-handle seed depth adjustment on the openers, adjustable gate openings and four press wheel options. Retail prices range from $12,356 to $15,049.